


No one who cooks, cooks alone

by Xyliandra



Series: An Exploration of Disparate Themes [2]
Category: Free!
Genre: Cooking, Domestic Fluff, M/M, Polyamorous Character, Polyamory, RinReiGisa - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-06-02
Updated: 2015-06-02
Packaged: 2018-04-02 11:31:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 547
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4058401
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Xyliandra/pseuds/Xyliandra
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Rin and Rei never let Nagisa into the kitchen unaccompanied. It’s like they thought he was going to blow up the house or something!</p>
            </blockquote>





	No one who cooks, cooks alone

**Author's Note:**

> Prompt: Rei and Rin find out that Nagisa can indeed cook.  
> Title taken from the quote: “No one who cooks, cooks alone. Even at her most solitary, a cook in the kitchen is surrounded by generations of cooks past, the advice and menus of cooks present, the wisdom of cookbook writers.” ― Laurie Colwin

Rin and Rei never let Nagisa into the kitchen unaccompanied. It’s like they thought he was going to blow up the house or something!

…

Okay, there  _was_  that time when he accidentally set pan of oil on fire and the flames definitely licked the cabinets.

But that was only the one time! He didn’t realize that Rin had changed the temperature on the stove and it was too hot to add oil without it splattering. It wasn’t his fault! And he totally put out the fire with a bag of flour, just like his mom had always told him too. Flour or a pot lid. You want to starve the fire of oxygen.

It was stupid that his attempts to make his boyfriends a special meal to celebrate moving in together were still being held over him. Several apartments later. Most days it was nice that he didn’t have to worry about food. He had two wonderful boyfriends who were totally capable of making him yummy meals. And he had Haru and Makoto, who always just “happened” to make too much food on the nights when Rin AND Rei were away for work. And he had an assortment of take-out places that knew him by voice, and a special card just for those food expenses (Rei was very precise with their finances). 

But Nagisa liked cooking. Cooking was so much more than making food. It was a way to show affection, gratitude, comfort, happiness, love. It was a way to put all of his anxiety and doubts into something productive with concrete results. It was a way to build memories with the people he loved the most.

He liked watching Rin and Rei cook together. They worked in sync, familiar with each other’s presence and movements now. He liked watching how they laughed and teased and how their eyes sparkled as they completed each dish. Nagisa always wanted to ask to join in, but he was scared he would mess it up. Cooking was something Rin and Rei had together. Maybe they didn’t want him to be a part of it.

"Oi, Nagisa." Nagisa turned his gaze from the point he had been staring at. He smiled (hopefully convincingly) at Rin. "Come in here."

Nagisa got up from his spot on the couch slowly and moved towards the kitchen. He stopped at the threshold.

"Is everything okay?" he asked glancing around the kitchen. "Do you need me to get anything from the store?" Rin clicked his tongue.

"Everything is fine Nagisa," Rei reassured lovingly. Nagisa nodded slowly.

"Get in here," Rin repeated, grabbing Nagisa by the arm and pulling him in.

"Rin…" Rei scolded gently. Rin rolled his eyes.

"You’re cooking with us," Rin declared.

"Cooking is a way to express love," Rei added with a smile. "We want to share that with you." Nagisa felt his heart swell.

"We’re gonna start with an easy soup. Rei’s started the broth, so you and I are gonna get to work on the vegetables.  I already peeled them, so we just gotta slice them. Alright?" Nagisa nodded. "Any questions before we start?"

"Do you want them diced or julienne?" 

Both his boyfriends gaped as he expertly selected his knife from the cutting block.

"Well?" Nagisa asked with a grin.

**Author's Note:**

> You can find me on tumblr at: xyliandra,tumblr.com and xyliandra-fics.tumblr.com


End file.
